


I Will Dry Your Eyes

by maplemarcher



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Minecraft Story Mode
Genre: Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Nightmares, Non-Graphic Violence, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-28
Updated: 2019-03-28
Packaged: 2019-12-25 21:08:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18269375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maplemarcher/pseuds/maplemarcher
Summary: Even heroes have nightmares.





	I Will Dry Your Eyes

**Author's Note:**

> One of my favorite tropes is the big strong characters only allowing themselves to break down in front of the people they love. Also, they've all got to have PTSD after the whole Wither Storm thing right?????

     Everything is dark. No matter where Axel looks, he can’t see. Shapeless blackness surrounds him, invading his lungs and threatening to suffocate him. Tendrils spiral out of the blackness and wrap around his arms and legs, tugging at his limbs and attempting to coax him into the dark. He chokes on the thick air and yanks himself out of their grip. Tears prick at the corners of his eyes. As he struggles free, a deafening roar shakes the space he’s in. It’s enough to send him to his knees, covering his ears and curling in on himself.

     Color slices through the blackness. Purple rays of light streak across Axel’s vision. Their color is familiar. Too familiar. A shiver runs down his spine, and his throat clenches as it fills with bile. Bright eyes the same color as the light with burning white pupils open and stare down at him. Watching. Hunting. Mocking. Another roar rattles his bones.

_“Axel!”_

     Whose voice is that? Axel can’t tell. All he can hear is the deafening roars that are growing more and more enraged. He opens his mouth to call out to the person who had cried out his name, to _anyone,_ but no sound comes out. Hot liquid drips down his chin, black and purple and thick. He can’t gasp. He can’t breathe.

     A final, earsplitting shriek rings out, and there’s a blinding flash of light. Axel shields his eyes until the light passes, and the scene before him is enough to make him vomit. All of his friends are in the clutches of the storm, some of their bodies limp and bleeding, some thrashing about and screaming. Axel can’t move. He can’t do anything but watch as the people he loves are killed in front of him.

_“Axel!”_

     The same person calls his name, and Axel can see that it’s Lukas. He’s wrapped in several tentacles, one hand stretched out towards him, tears pouring down his face and scratch marks in the dirt. No, no, no, no. Axel reaches for him, but his movements are so slow. He won’t get to him in time. He knows. _He knows._

_“Axel!”_

_“Axel, please!”_

_“Axel!”_

     They’re all screaming now. Jesse, Olivia, Petra, Lukas, Gabriel, Magnus, Ellegaard, Soren, even Ivor. Every pair of eyes is on him, every voice wailing until their throat is raw, begging for help, begging for him to _save them,_ begging, begging, _begging._ All he can do is watch. He can’t do anything. He can’t. He _can’t._ It’s his fault. He didn’t protect them. He couldn’t lure the monster away.

_“AXEL!”_

     Axel wakes with a strangled cry. He sits straight up in bed, the sweat-drenched sheet sticking to his torso. It takes him a moment to remember where he is. He’s in Beacontown. The Wither Storm is gone. It has been for months. As his breathing slows, he puts his face in his shaking hands. There are tears dripping down his face. Axel curses under his breath and punches the wall.

     Nightmares are no stranger to him. The one he’s just woken up from was actually pretty tame. He doesn’t want to think about the others he’s had. Not now. Now he just wants to go back to sleep and dream of normal things, like flying or blowing things up with no consequence or fulfilling his greatest hero fantasies. But the echoes of the storm’s roars ring too fresh in his mind. He takes a shaky breath and scrubs his face with his hands.

     It’s far too dark and stuffy in his room. He lights the candle on his night stand and opens the window. The soft light and cool air flowing into the room calm him down a bit. It’s rained; he can tell from the fresh scent filtering in through the window. Axel goes to the sill to look out at the streets. Beacontown is always a comforting sight. It reminds him how far they’ve come, that they fought and won, and that they’re safe. Usually the town is enough to calm his mind so that he can get to sleep, but not tonight. He’s still shaken.

     With another sigh, Axel tugs on a t-shirt and goes out into the hallway, bringing the candle with him. The door creaks as he opens it. It’s deafening in the silence. He’s not sure if the echoing of his footsteps stems from his heightened senses or if it’s unusually quiet. He reaches the door he’s looking for and opens it as quietly as he can, not wanting to wake the room’s inhabitant. It seems to have worked; the shape under the blankets doesn’t even flinch. He closes the door behind him and crawls into the bed. The sheets feel much warmer and more welcoming than his own.

     Lukas is sleeping peacefully, wrapped up in the blankets like they’re a cocoon. His hair is disheveled and his mouth is slightly open as he snores. Axel takes a moment just to look at him. He has to remind himself that he’s okay. That they’re all okay. He brushes a lock of hair off of Lukas’ forehead before settling down. The bed frame creaks, and Lukas stirs.

     “Axel?” he yawns, voice thick with sleep and eyes bleary.

     “Go back to sleep,” Axel whispers. “Give me some blankets first though.”

     “What’s up? Are you okay?” Lukas says as he unwraps himself from his cocoon.

     “I’m fine,” Axel lies. He pulls Lukas close to him. He’s always so warm. Feeling his skin on his own, hearing his breathing, feeling the gentle thump of his heart against his own is such a relief.

     “Did you have another nightmare?”

     Axel’s silent. He focuses on the faint freckles on Lukas’ arms rather than looking him in the eye. Lukas cups his cheek gently and tilts his head up to look at him. Something in Axel breaks when he sees the concern in his eyes. He screws his eyes shut as tightly as he can in an attempt to keep the tears welling up at bay, but it’s no use. They spill over anyway, rolling down his cheeks silently. More follow in their wake when Axel feels Lukas kissing them away with impossibly gentle touches. He lets himself be held, lets Lukas scoot up and guide his head to his chest. His heartbeat is more audible now. It gives Axel an anchor. He’s able to pull himself together. Lukas’ warm hands wipe away the remainder of his tears.

     “Talk to me,” he whispers.

     “I-I’m fine,” Axel says.

     “You are the most stubborn person I’ve ever met,” Lukas sighs.

     “You love me anyway,” Axel says with a slight smile.

     “I do.”

     They’re quiet for a long time. Lukas runs his fingers through Axel’s hair. Axel’s holding him tightly, burying his face in his chest. He doesn’t want to let go. He finally speaks up when he thinks he can do so without breaking again.

     “I did have a nightmare,” he says quietly.

     “Do you want to talk about it?” Lukas asks.

     “I guess. It just—it was the usual stuff. Not being able to help, watching the Wither Storm kill everyone, everyone screaming for help.” He wipes at the corners of his eyes with the heel of his palm. “Like I said, just the usual.”

     “We’re safe,” Lukas murmurs into his hair. “I’m here.”

     “I know,” Axel says weakly.

     Lukas is no stranger to nightmares either. They all have them. It’s something to be expected, really. Something traumatic happened, something that almost destroyed the world they live in and something that _did_ destroy so much of what they knew. Axel’s caught Jesse sobbing in the middle of the night, Petra shakily running her hand up and down her arm where the wither had taken hold of her, Olivia staring at nothing with her face pale and eyes wide, and Lukas crawling into his own bed, shaking. It’s one of the less glamorous parts of being a hero.

     Axel nestles closer to Lukas. He’s one of the few people he lets himself be completely vulnerable around. Their relationship had started out rocky, but as time went on, Axel found himself putting more and more trust in Lukas. He was the first person he’d opened up to about how much Magnus’ death had affected him. The only other person who’s ever seen him cry is Petra.

     Lukas is still running his fingers through Axel’s hair, but his movements are decidedly slower. Axel looks up and sees his boyfriend’s eyelids drooping. He smiles to himself.

     “Go to sleep,” he says.

     “Wanna make sure you’re okay,” Lukas mumbles. Even as he says this, he’s nodding off.

     “And you say _I’m_ stubborn. I’m okay.”

     “You are stubborn.”

     “Shut up and _go to sleep,_ you dingus.”

     “Mmkay.”

     Lukas’ soft snores fill the room not long after that. Axel shakes his head and closes his eyes, his small smile still on his face. His nightmare still nags at the back of his mind, but he can push it away for now. It helps that he knows he’s cared for. Loved, even. He knows that Lukas will be there when it happens again. That’s enough to put his mind at ease. It takes him a while, but he finally drifts off into a peaceful, dreamless sleep. He doesn't wake again until the morning comes.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! <3


End file.
